On Wednesday, New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman confirmed that the organization will make a serious push to land one of the best pitchers still available on the MLB free agent market.
The Yankees front office has been very busy over the last week. After being hit with a massive setback when they lost superstar outfielder Juan Soto to the New York Mets in free agency, the team has rallied with a trio of big moves.
The first came on the open market when they forked over a whopping $218 million deal to Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried. That was followed by a highly praised trade for talented Milwaukee Brewers closer Devin Williams. They then added to their haul of big-name additions with another trade. This time for Chicago Cubs centerfielder Cody Bellinger.
All three stars address roster needs and improve upon a team that reached the World Series in October. However, the New York Yankees are not done and they will soon be in hot pursuit for another elite pitcher in free agency. But it is not Corbin Burnes.
New York Yankees GM confirms upcoming meeting with Roki Sasaki
Corbin Burnes is the best starting pitcher on this year’s free-agent market. He is, arguably, the second-best player available after Juan Soto. However, he is expected to get the largest contract of any pitcher this offseason. And the Yanks already handed out a huge deal to Max Fried.
However, there is a far cheaper player available that could turn into a player just as good as Burnes. And that is Japanese ace Roki Sasaki. What also makes the 23-year-old so appealing to MLB teams is he will come at a discount rate since he is available in the international free-agent pool instead of the main pool of players.
- Roki Sasaki stats (2024): 10-5 Record, 2.35 ERA, 1.036 WHIP, 129 SO, 111.0 IP
The Yankees had been linked to Sasaki but that was just speculation. Well, on Wednesday, Yanks GM Brian Cashman confirmed (h/t SNY) that the organization is set to meet with Sasaki after he comes back to the States following a return home for the holidays.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are heavy favorites to win the Sasaki sweepstakes. However, the Yankees brand is strong in Japan and they have made successful pitches in the past for other Japanese greats. Sasaki reportedly wants to be one of the faces of his next organization. He could potentially be that as a nasty No. 3 starter in New York behind ace Gerrit Cole and Fried.